Minister of Roads Transport and Highways (MoRTH) Nitin Gadkari has a sharp eye on pushing the diesel car under a higher tax regime. According to the latest data, the Government of India (GoI) already imposes around 28% tax on diesel cars and additional cess as per the engine capacity. This enhances the cost of diesel cars by up to 50% more than the base price.
On 12 September Minister of Roads Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari stated that people in India should have to move from patrols and diesel cars in upcoming years. News spread over the internet that “MoRTH minister Nitin Gadkari proposed the idea to the finance ministry to take a 10% additional charge with the name of “Pollution tax” on diesel vehicles”.
Since the news went viral online, people who were planning to get a diesel car dropped their plans. However, Nitin Gadkari officially mentioned that there is no provision shared by him to the ministry on imposing higher taxes on diesel vehicles. Still, we can say that in upcoming years the cost of petrol and diesel vehicles will reach its peak. This news of imposing higher taxes on diesel vehicles also plunged the stocks of automobile companies.
Afterwards, Nitin Gadkari mentioned that the news of imposing higher taxes on diesel cars is not true, it is a matter of consideration, especially for those who are planning to have a petrol or diesel vehicle in upcoming years. As per the committee appointed by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the Government of India is planning to place a ban on diesel 4-wheel vehicles by 2027 in cities that hold more than 1 million population.
Currently, the Indian government is imposing a 28% Tax on diesel vehicles and an additional cess that makes the cost of vehicles 50% higher.
Why is the Government Pushing Back Diesel Vehicles?
India is not representing the world in different events like COP27, G20, BRICS and others. In COP 27 held in Egypt, the government of India plays a vital role and claims that India will reach net zero emissions by 2070. According to recent sources, Diesel accounts for around 40% of India’s petroleum products which leads to huge carbon emissions.
India plans to generate 40% of its electricity requirement through renewable energy and in this context, diesel is one of the major hindrances to clean. The reason behind this, 87% of the Diesel consumed is in the transport segment and 40% of total diesel sales in India is consumed by only 3 states Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Maharastra.
Diesel car market in India
With the futuristic vision, one of the biggest car manufacturers in India, Maruti Suzuki, stopped making diesel vehicles from 1 April 2020. Following him, some other brands like Tata Motors, Honda, Mahindra and some others also stopped making some of their specified models of diesel cars.
Still, diesel cars are dominating the Indian market because of foreign brands like Kia, Toyota and Hyundai. Since the Government of India places higher taxes on diesel vehicles we see a drop of 16.5% in demand for diesel cars in India.
Why do car brands move away from Diesel?
One of the major reasons behind this is the availability of Oxides of nitrogen. This generates one of the biggest disadvantages of buying a diesel car over a petrol car. As per the sources, the biggest blow over diesel was because of the Volkswagen scandal in 2015. But, in India, the main reason due to why Indian automobile brands left the making of diesel cars was BS-VI emissions. Furthermore, to meet the future requirement and maintain competition they had to put high costs into upgrading the engine and performance as compared to any other fuel type.
Strict action of the Indian government also plays a vital role in wiping out diesel cars in India. Imposing heavy taxes and additional cess makes diesel cars expensive. That’s why Indian brands like Maruti Suzuki, TATA MOTORS, and other brands pack their bags and announce that they’re not going to provide diesel cars.
Why might people prefer Diesel cars to petrol cars?
There are lots of reasons that define why people in India prefer to have a diesel car instead of a petrol car. Some of the major reasons are mentioned below.
- Diesel cars attain higher fuel economy as compared to petrol cars.
- If you have a diesel car then you’ll get comparatively greater energy content per liter.
- Not only this, Diesel engines are comparatively more efficient as compared to petrol.
- It doesn’t use high-voltage spark ignition and uses comparatively less fuel.
- Users will get more torque.
- The price of diesel is also lower than petrol with a decent margin. So, it becomes less expensive to travel anywhere if you have a diesel car.
These are some of the major reasons why people in the Indian automobile market prefer diesel cars instead of petrol cars in India.
Wrapping Up
The MoRTH minister has a special love for electric vehicles too. The entry of electric vehicles in India also impacted other fuel type cars in India. The Government of India is planning to change the Indian automobile market and introduce electric vehicles on a large scale. In the future, we’re going to see a rapid hike of taxes on both petrol and diesel cars. So, if you’re planning to get a diesel car or petrol car in future then we suggest you to go check out some electric vehicle options too.
